Chair.



4 No. 628,306. Patented July 4, I899.

C. E. FARRINGTUN.

CHAIR.

(Application filed Mar. 17, 1899.)

3 Sheets-Sheet I.

(-No Model.)

WITNESSES: INVENTOR 12. Xbw

ATTORNEYS.

m: NQREIS mans w, moyournm, wnsn Patented July 4, I899.

C. E. FARRINGTON.

C H A l R.

(Ap lipatipn filed Mar. 17, 1899.!

3 Sheets$heel 2.

(Nu Mod'ah) WITNESSES: |NVENTOR 61%, fll-WM Wm. BY

ATTORNEYS m: nonms wzrzns cu. Pum'ournu, wnnmcmu. w. c.

V UNITED STATES "PATENT OFFICE.

CHARLES FARRINGTON, or' oALDwELL, NEW JERSEY.

CHAIR.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent-No..628,306, dated July 4, 1899.

Application filed March 17, 1899'. seal No. 709,387. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that 1, CHARLES E. FARRING- TON, a citizen of the United States, residingat Caldwell, in the county of Essex and State of New Jersey, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Chairs; and Ido herewhich can be readily and quickly folded into a small space, so as to be packed within a Fig. 5 is an edge viewof the same.

trunk, valise, or the like and transported from place tovplace, to enable the device to be securely and easily fastened to some other article of furniture, such as. an ordinary dining-room chair, and thus form a high chair, as commonly called, which can be placed in position before the dining-table, and to secure other advantages and results, some of which may be referred to hereinafter in connection with the description of the working parts 7 V v i I The invention consists in the improved folding chairand in the arrangements andcombinations of parts of the same, all substane tially, as will be hereinafter set forth and finally'embraced in the clauses of the claim. Referring to the accompanying drawings, in which like letters and figures of reference indicate corresponding parts in each of the several views, Figurel is a side elevation of the folding chair. Fig. 2 is a perspective view of a clamp by means of which the said folding chair is attached to the said other article of furniture. Fig. 3 is afront elevation of the said folding chair. Fig. Us a plan of a tray preferably employed with said folding chair.

front view of the chair folded. Fig. 7 is'a front view of the seat and back with the arms and uprights removed. Fig. 8 is aplan of'the seat and back, the side supports for the'seat and arms being in horizontal section.

- Fig. 9 is a detail showing a portion of the Fig. 6isa arm and upright in side elevation. Fig. 10 is a sectional view taken at line m, Fig. 9; and

Fig; 11 is a detail view of a portion ofthe seat.- 4

In said drawings,aindicates a dining-roomchair or other article of furniture to which [my improved folding chair may be applied,

and b b are standards for the folding chair,

which are preferably curved downwardly on t: ward from the other portions of the said chair, and have at their lowerextremities clamps c,

be securely fastened upon the said chair a. The said clamps are of a peculiar construction, whereby they may be made, at a small by means ofwhich the said standards may cost and yet be effective in securely attaching the folding chair to any article of furni ture.

The clamp e is attached to the lower end of l the standards by means of eyebolts d d, e, andf, (shown more clearly in Fig. 2,.) the eyebolt-s d d being inserted in the standards closely near the lower end thereof at the opposite sides, the bolt e being arranged at about midway between the opposite edges of the standards suitably above the eyebolts cl d,

and the' eyebolt f being arranged vertically beneath the eyebolt e in a horizontal plane and a little above the horizontal plane of the eyebolts d d.

Within the eyes of the bolts 6 f is arrangeda thumb-screw g, and on said-th'umb-scre w is arranged ath'readed nut or casting h, the opposite arms of which are provided with eyes It to receive the downwardly-projectingor hooked ends 2' of a wire clamping-frame j. The said wire clamping-frame is of peculiar construction and comprises a piece of heavy wire which is bent'double in a horizontal plane to engage the bottom of the chair or article of furniture, as at].

From the horizontal portion of the clampframe the arms j 'j of said frame extend upward through the eyes at d and are bent at their upper ends inward and downward to engage the nut h and enter in the eyes hthere of, and thus it will be noticed that by turning the thumb-screw gin its eyebolt the said nut h will be raised or lowered upon said bolt and with it the frame, so that the said frame will be brought into clamping relation with The manner in which the standards I) are connected at their upper parts to the bod yof the folding chair, and which will be hereinafter more fully described, admits of a limited movement of the lower extremities of the standards toward or apart from each other, whereby the folding chair maybe attached to other articles of furniture of different widths. The standards I) are each in sections 1) b the section b at the upper extremity of a standard being rigidly secured to one of the arms 70 of the folding chair, the arm and upper section of the standard forming aT-shaped construction. The said upper sections are hinged to the lowersection, as indicated in Fig. 1, the hinge-pin of the hinge 1 and the joints formed bet-ween the upper and lower sections being formed and arranged at angles other than right angles, whereby in the folding operations the lower sections will lie side by side substantially parallel with one another and will not interfere with one another in the folding operations, as will be hereinafter more fully described.

To hold the upper and lower sections in alinement, I employ a catch of peculiar construction, consisting of a wire piece m, bent double or into a U shape, the upper extremities of which are bent over the upper end of the upper section 12 the doubled lower part of the wire m forming an open tongue adapted to extend around a lip 12, secured to the inside of each of the lower sections. lVhen the upper section b of the standard is inserted in the arm of the chair, the said ends of the wire piece on are inserted therewith and are thus held firmly in place, so that the said doubled wire lies securely against the inward face of the upper section and projects below the joint formed between the two sections into engagement with the lip 91, above referred to. Thus when the lip n and double wire m are in engagement it will be evident that the sections Z) and b will be prevented from turning on the hinge-pin above referred to, and the sections will be locked in'their desired positions ofalinement. Then it is desired to fold the sections in the operation of folding the chair, thedoubled wires on are thrown inwardlyaway from the lips I! by means of pushing-pins 0, which extend through the lower sections 1), and at the outer sides ofsaid sections are provided with heads 0' to receive the thumb in the pushing operation. By pushingon the said heads 0 the doubled portions of the wires m are thrown away from the lips n, so that the upper sections can be turned on the hingepins to permit the desired folding, as will be understood.

Below the hinged joints of the standards the latter are adapted to enter into apertures formed in the opposite edges of the seat 0 of the folding chair, said apertures being of a size to properly receive the standards and efthe folding chair, and screws 8' are inserted through said eyes into said downwardly-projecting portions, as shown in Figs. 3 and 7, the said screws serving as hinge-pins, by means of which the back may be folded down upon the upper face of the seat.

The seat 9 of the chair is held upon the standards I) by means of wires 1). (Shown more clearly in Figs. 1, 8, and 0, where the said wires are shown to be pivoted to the under side of the arms in eyebolts p 1), holding said wire up against the under sides of said arms.) The lower extremities of the said wires 19 are hooked or provided with eyes and enter eyebolts r secured in the upper side of the seat near the opposite edges thereof. The said wires 17 thus hold the seat in suspensory relation to the arms of the chair and yet permit of the independent folding of the arms with relation to said seat in the manner hereinafter described.

By means of the standards 1: being fitted into the recesses r in the opposite edges of the seat the said seat is kept in proper horizontal position with firmness and without much strain upon the'other parts above described.

The rear extremities of the arms of the chair are provided with screws q, which project backward from said rear extremities, and between the rear extremities of the arms and the heads of the screws are adapted to enter sockets or recesses u of peculiar formation at the opposite lateral edges of the back 8 of the chair, the said sockets being shown more clearly in Fig. 7 of the drawings. The said recesses u are preferably of a hooked shape,

the inner end lyingabove the horizontal plane brought nearer togctherin fitting the chai r to .v

supports of various widths, said standards swinging pivotally upon theirfastening to the edges of the seat as a fulcrum.

The standards I) are firmly held in the recesses 0'', formed at the opposite edges of the seat, by means of locking-tongues e, which are pivoted on the seat and extend around the outsides of the standards, and at their free ends areadapted to enter into engagement with catches b on the seat, the said catches being preferably screw-heads, over which the resilient extremity of the lockingtongue may be sprung. I prefer to employ two or more of the said catches or screw-heads I of various widths.

'0 by means of which I am enabled to accommodate the standards to the seats of chairs The said tongues at their free extremities are preferably turned upward, as at o, to provide finger extensions, by means of which the operation of the said tongues is facilitated.

The seat 1' of the chair is preferably made double, the central portion of the upper thickness w forming the ordinary chair-seat and the lower thickness w enabling the device to be used as a childs commode. To this end the central portion 9 of the upper thickness is hinged at its rear edge and adapted to be to make a rectangular portion t of the lower thickness of the seat, as shown in Fig. 11, re-

movable, the said removable portion containing the opening 15.

To hold the child within the chair and provide the usual rest or shelf in front of him,- I employ a tray which is attachable to the forward extremities of the arms is. The said tray is provided at each side within the raised margin 3 and above the horizontal board 4 thereof with a wire 5, which is bent at right angles, one extremity entering the raised margin 3 and the other arm or extension passing downward through the bottom of said tray, the said wires being suitably riveted in place and forming horizontal slots into which screws 6, secured at the forward extremities of the arms it, extend. The heads of the screws prevent the wires 5 from drawing off in the forward direction, and the shank of said screw serves as a bearing for the wire to prevent downward movement. The tray is thus supported on said screws 6, and the weight of the forwardly projecting part causes the floor of the tray back of the wires 5 to lie against the under sides of the arms 7c, whereby the tray is firmly held in proper position.

The raised rim 3 is discontinued at proper points near the ends of the rear edge of the tray to allow the floor to come flat against the arm 76, aswill be understood.

At the rear edge of the tray beneath the arms of the folding chair I employ springs 7, adapted to engage screws 8, projecting downward from the under side of the arms. The said springs are fastened to the rear edge of the tray, near the opposite ends thereof, and are arranged edgewise, so that the rear fiat side of said spring will come into engagement with the shank of the screw 8 and lie above the head thereof. The lower edge of the spring will then engage the head of the screw, and thus when the parts are in proper rela- 'the parts away.

tive position the tray will be held inv the dethe arms of the chair by simply drawing the free extremities of the springs away from the shanks of the depending screws.

In operating the device I first remove the tray from the chair and afterward arrange it on the under side of the seat when packing I next release the tongues o, by means of which the standards b are held in the recesses r at the opposite sides of the seat, turning the said tongues on their pivots so that the handled extremities t" of said' tongues lie against the rear screw-bolts T The standards are then free to be withdrawn downwardly outward from the sides of the seat with the arms, and as this is done the screws g at the rear extremities of the arms 70 are withdrawn from the recesses u at the opposite edges of the back. This operation frees the said back, so that the same may be turned forward on its hinges and brought to lie flat upon the seat. I then turn the arms 10 and the upper sections 19 of the standards attached thereto, so that they lie upon the upper or back surface of the back of the chair, and then turn the lower sections 29 of the standards inwardly on the hinges 1, so that they overlie the arms.

Thus in the folded conditions shown in Fig. 6 I have first the seat, then above the seat the back, then above the back the arms, and then above the arms'the lower sections of the standards, with their clamps, all folded so that the chair is brought into a very small compass and can be packed away in atrunk and occupy but comparatively little space therein.

It is evident that should I desire to do so the folding chair may be clamped to a simple fiat frame or board 10, as shown in Fig. 3, instead of to an ordinary chair, and be used as a low chair instead of a high chair.

The parts thus described are most of them of simple construction, and the combination is easily understood by the operator and permits of very quick operation in folding and unfolding. The result is a childs chair ad mirably adapted to several uses, easily carried about and capable of being readily connected to any ordinary chair in position for use.

Various changes and modifications may be made from the exact construction described without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention, and I do not wish to be limited by the positive descriptive terms emsaid parts being adapted to fold flatwise together, substantially as set forth.

2. The improved chair herein described, comprising a seat, a back and arms pivotally connected with said seat and adapted to fold together thereon, and standards connected to said arms and separablyheld against the sides of said seat, and clamps at the bottoms of said standards, adapted to engage the edges of a dining-room-chair seat or the like, substantially as set forth.

3. The improved folding chair herein described, comprisinga seat, back and side arms hinged thereto and standards fixed to said arms and extending downward through recesses in the edges of the seat, means for holding said standards in said recesses, and said standards being hinged between said seat and arms, said back, arms and standards being adapted to all fold flatwise together upon the seat, substantially as set forth.

4. In a folding chair, the combination of a seat, a back hinged thereto, arms, wires pivotally secured to both said seat and an arm, standards connected at their upper ends to said arms and projecting below said seat and thereat being provided with means for attachment to a support for said chair, and means for holding'the standards to the edges of the seat and permitting the projecting lower ends to be spread more or less, substantially as set forth.

5. A folding chair comprising a seat recessed at its opposite lateral edges, a back, arms adapted to engage said back, wires pivotally connected to said arms and seat, and jointed standards fixed at their upper ends to said arms and extending down through said recesses in the seat and having clamps at their lower ends, and an adjustable clasp securing said standards in said recesses, substantially as set forth.

6. In a chair of the character described, the combination with the seat and back, the latter having outwardly-opening recesses or slots curving upward, of arms pivotally connected to said seat and having their rear ends adapted to be brought into said recesses, said recesses being at the inner end considerably wider than the engaging ends of the arms and allowingalateraladjustmentthereof,substantially as set forth. i

7. The combination in a folding chair having a seat, and arms and back hinged thereto, of standards fixed at their upper ends to said arms and extending downward past the seat, each of said standards being joined between the arm and seat to form upper and lower sections, a lip projecting from the lower section and a spring-tongue lying against the upper section and extending downward to engage said lip and hold the joint against action, sub stantially as set forth.

8. In a folding chair, the combination with aseat, folding back and arms,ofjointed standards extending downward from said arms, means for temporarily securing said standards against the edges of the seat and means for holding said joints against bending, substantially as set forth.

9. The combination with a chair having standards, of clamps each comprising a doubled wire portion having a vertical part sliding in bearings projecting from the standard, its upper ends bent inward and secured to a nut interiorly threaded, and its lower end bent inward at substantially right angles and underlying the bottom of the standard, and a threaded bolt extending through said nut and turning in bearings on the standards, substantially as set forth.

10. In a childs chair, the combination with the side arms having screws or hooks forwardly projecting from the forward extremities of said arms, of a tray having a plane board floor or bottom, wire loops or staples projecting upward from said floor near the rear edges and adapted to hook onto said screws at the forward extremities of the arms when the front edge of the tray is elevated, said tray normally lying with that portion of its bottom at the rear of said wire loops or staples in contact with the under surface of the arms, substantially as set forth.

11. The herein-described childs chair, in which is combined a seat and a back, the latter having outwardly-opening curved or hooked slots or recesses for the arms, arms separably connected to said back and pivotally connected to said seat whereby said arms can be swung outward from engagement with the back and also folded inward upon the other parts, substantially as set forth.

12. The combination in a childs chair, of a seat, a back hinged to said seat and having hook-shaped projections at the outer lateral edges, and arms pivotally connected to said seat and being adapted to engage at their rearward ends or extremities said projections, the hooked walls of said projections holding the said arms against horizontally outward or lateral movement, and said rear ends or extremities of the arms having heads or enlargements preventing forward withdrawal, substantially as set forth.

In testimony that I claim .the foregoing I have hereunto set my hand this 28th day of February, 1899.

CHARLES E. FARRINGTON.

\Vitnesses:

CHARLES II. PELL, C. B. PITNEY. 

